


Lily Luna, Unapologetic: The Things We Don’t Say (But Should)

by ConsentFest, MistyDeath, Nifflers_n_nargles



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternative format: magazine profile, Badass!Lily Luna, Consent Issues, F/F, F/M, Gen, Harry Potter Next Generation, Implied Dubcon/Noncon, Implied Violence (offscreen), Implied vs Explicit Consent, Offscreen Dubcon/Noncon, Peer Pressure, Sex Education, Teaching Consent, When Internet Meets Magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-14
Updated: 2019-03-14
Packaged: 2019-11-06 20:06:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,976
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17946254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ConsentFest/pseuds/ConsentFest, https://archiveofourown.org/users/MistyDeath/pseuds/MistyDeath, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nifflers_n_nargles/pseuds/Nifflers_n_nargles
Summary: “Before I can get my first question out Lily asks me, ‘When was the first time someone gave you a sex talk?’I find myself telling her about overhearing my mom in my older sister’s room when she was home on hols from Hogwarts in her fourth year—I was 10 and had just received my letter. It was the year there had been a string of love potion ‘accidents’ and I could tell my mum was worried.She nods and jots something down in her notebook. As I continue telling her about these memories, I wonder why I’m sharing all this information with Lily. Aren’t I the one supposed to be interviewing her?‘That sounds awful,’ she commiserates, ‘but can I ask you one more thing?’ I nod, curiosity piqued by her tone. ‘When was the first time someone talked to you about consent?’”





	Lily Luna, Unapologetic: The Things We Don’t Say (But Should)

**Author's Note:**

> First and foremost, an enormous thank you to the mods for this fest and their patience. This fest is brilliant and having the opportunity to write for it has been a dream. As always, this fic would not be here without the encouragement, occasional snark, and careful eyes of the best beta in the game Keyflight790! Chris, you’re getting a million hugs and then some! 
> 
> And, saving the best bit for last, Donna, please take this fic and enjoy yourself to your heart’s content. We was very excited to have you as our prompter and hope it’s been worth the wait!

**Lily Luna Potter-Weasley never asked to be famous.**

**As the youngest child of the world-renowned Quidditch player-turned-coach Ginny Weasley-Potter and her equally infamous—yet aggressively private—husband Harry Potter, Lily had the spotlight thrust upon her before she had taken her first breath. While she may not have asked for it, fame sits well on her.**

**The first time I meet with Lily Luna—Lils or LL to those in her inner circle—she’s curled up in the bright bay window at the front of Witches Brew, the trendy new coffee shop/wine bar run by her friend, Mary Alice Longbottom, that is popular among the newest classes of witches and wizards to come out of Hogwarts. Its early afternoon and the sun is streaming in through the leaded glass, glinting off her burnished copper tresses—a trait she inherited from her father she later jokes. Lily is furiously scribbling in a notebook, her soy vanilla latte shimmering under a stasis charm. As a settle myself in at the table she glances up and gives me an apologetic look while asking for just “one more moment before we get to it.” I happily oblige and order myself a tea while she finishes her thought and puts down her biro. We bond over the uselessness of quills and laugh when we ask at the same time if the other minds if we take notes. Lily explains that she is working on the curriculum for the new sexual health and education course Hogwarts is finally bringing on board, and that her “notebook has become a new appendage.” I accommodate her again, a trend I’m noticing—one I’m sure isn’t limited to just me.**

**Before I can get my first question out Lily asks me, “When was the first time someone gave you a sex talk?” I laugh a little, surprised to have the tables turned on me right away; I had been warned to stay on my toes but that advice came into play much faster than I anticipated. I find myself telling her about overhearing my mom in my older sister’s room when she was home on hols from Hogwarts in her fourth year—I was 10 and had just received my letter. It was the year there had been a string of love potion ‘accidents’ and I could tell my mum was worried.**

**She nods and jots something down in her notebook. As I continue telling her about these memories, I wonder why I’m sharing all this information with Lily. Aren’t I the one supposed to be interviewing her? I realize though, that it’s because, out of all the people I have met and interviewed, Lily Luna is literally the easiest person to talk to. She exudes confidence and wisdom despite her age, and she makes you feel like everything you’re saying is significant. I tell her as much after sharing the horrors of my mother making me practice protection spells on our kitchen fruit selection and she laughs.**

**“That sounds awful,” she commiserates, “but can I ask you one more thing?” I nod, curiosity piqued by her tone. “When was the first time someone talked to you about consent?” I wrack my brain for several long moments before the realization dawns on me, and I can only guess it’s written clear across my face. “That’s what I thought,” she sighs. “You said love potion ‘accidents’ were happening and instead of discussing consent, we’re taught about the mechanics of sex. It’s beyond frustrating.”**

**And she’s right. As a society, we skirt around the issues by teaching children how to protect themselves instead of how to respect each other. Reversing that mentality has been Lily’s mission for the past seven years, and she, along with her advocacy organization, _Consent is Key_ , sponsored the Consent Decrees and their subsequent lobbying of the Wizengamot to have them adopted. Now she’s ready for her next big challenge. **

**“After being on the receiving end of the talk when they’re younger, parents should be better prepared. I’m hoping to change that.”**

****

If Lily thought on it, the memory was too clear and painful for her not to remember. Considering the fact that she’d been one of the few girls in her year to have her period by the time she got to Hogwarts. She’d already gotten the sex talk via Muggle schooling and her mum. 

Lily had been trying to explain the situation as calmly over dinner during the holidays. Letters hadn’t quite done it, and every conversation held online had only made her parents worry even more.

At least Lily remembered saying it calmly. Maybe she had focused too hard on tying herself to the familiarity and comfort of home to realize how bad the situation had been. What she remembered was that Albus had kept moaning about how _her_ bad experience at school had somehow ruined _his_ reputation.

As if the Potter name had always been stellar.

James had piped up from where he’d been sitting, watching the Lily and Albus bicker in between Lily’s explanation.

“--just because your spotty arse finally got some action for once - “Albus had muttered.

“Hey! Can we _please_ stop talking about _anyone’s_ freckled arse?” 

Lily knew she was partially to blame for that sentence coming out of her brother’s mouth. So, that was it. She’d had it. Lily stood up and pushed away from the table. “Sorry dad but, seeing as it’s not _my_ freckled arse Scorpius is after…”

Harry had stared after Lily a moment before glancing between James and Albus, glass still raised in the air.

There was not enough wine in the world for her father to not notice the weight dropped on the table at _that_ exit. So, with a muted cough he placed his glass on the table. There was silence, and then -

“Go after her. This isn’t the night for this one,” James’ voice carried over. 

Her dad had taken that for the stage exit it was and laughed, “Right - maybe tomorrow, then!” 

Lily could remember the outbursts that started. She’d run up the stairs at the sound of Harry leaving the table and laid across her bed as casually as possible. 

Her dad had sat on the edge of her bed for some time, mouth closing around questions that never got asked. 

Who on earth decided they needed to endure this again? Lily had known that life wouldn’t be easy. Still, why did somebody look at Lily and see vulnerability? 

And _why on Earth did Hogwarts tolerate this? Didn’t they have the means to end this?_

Lily listened patiently to her dad had given her The Talk. The Sex Ed talk, which, by her count, should have happened four years or more prior but here they were. Because of her blogging. 

Her dad started with the Muggle route, but gave up once she’d asked him if he even knew what a dam was. He’d resolved to teaching Lily the Protective Charms and a few magical anecdotes that, according to him, “Would have saved _so much time, but no, your mother wanted to watch me struggle for the sheer entertainment value!_ ” had he known it the first time around.

Once Lily had practiced the incredibly uncomfortable Protection Charm on herself for the last time, she’d thrown herself back on her bed. The last thing she needed to hear was another “... Erm, so...” come out of her dad’s mouth, but it had been eating at her. A lot. 

“You mentioned nothing about consent,” Lily tried for casual. It failed because her dad looked at her like she had asked him to kill their Crup when she looked up. He’d been stone rigid, jaw twitching in a way Lily normally found funny. Now it was anything but. 

“I said nothing about consent because I wasn’t aware there was an issue with it!”

He wasn’t facing her anymore, and Lily hadn’t been sure his eyes would have seen her if he did. 

“ _Did he hurt you_?”

“No! No dad,” she had rushed out, jolting up, “he didn’t. But he - he didn’t _know_. He didn’t think there was _anything wrong with_ not _asking_!” 

As she watched her dad struggle for another moment, Lily had readied herself for whatever nightmare was coming her way.

“Were you going into that... situation... erm…,” and there he had gone again, off into a confused rage and saying monosyllabic responses that left people as confused as before. It shouldn’t have been comforting that her father’s tells were signs that things had gone well.

“Prepared?”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah, I was, Dad.”

“Did you know-”

“Look, he was just a twat about it. I was the one who started it, he couldn’t be arsed to bring his half to the table, all right?” Lily handled it better than he did. That much had been obvious to her. “But it’s the thought that counts, and that thought determines whether someone’s okay to move forward.”

After her outburst, Lily had put her hand on his shoulder. “Nobody hurt me. Nobody does anything to Lily Luna- remember? I’ve got Mum’s tactics for that sort.”

“Besides, this whole media bull is happening because of the internet and every troll that’s been waiting in the shadows since the TeamThor thing died down. Which, you know, we’re lucky this is all that’s happening. As that wonderful musical Aunt Hermione took us to said-“

 _The internet is for porn. Christ. First the arse conversation_ now this?

Her dad seemed to lose count of how long he’d been sitting there in shock for, but Lily had had things to do that night.

“Well, if that’s all you’re saying…” Lily had left off, flashing him a disquieted look her mom taught her. “I’ll see myself out.” 

She’d almost been at the door when her dad made a desperate attempt - he had to. Somehow, Harry Potter had to be there for his kids. But, thankfully, he’d learned that he wasn’t their friend, no matter how hard he tried to understand them.

“Lils - Lily!” 

She hadn’t even been looking at him. Maybe that had been better - 

“You’d tell me if there was something wrong, wouldn’t you?” This was his kid. If there was one thing Lily knew he didn’t want them to inherit, it was his emotional stupidity. Then again, they were teenagers. It was something they did.

“I made a viral blog post ranting about how wrong the experience was, and you’re asking me if I’m as dim as my brothers?”

Harry winced but steadied on. “Not quite, Lils. I’m asking if you’d, maybe, think of saying something to the adults in the room first? It doesn’t,” he paused, because as painful as it is, sometimes he can’t be there for them, “have... to be. Y’know, _me_.”

“Dad, Daddy,” she smiled, soft and placating, and every bit the annoyed teenager she was, “the day I say anything to you before I talk to Victoire or Teddy is a day we don’t want to see.” Harry laughed. 

“But yeah. I’d tell you.”

He smiled at her and shot her a look when she motioned, “ _Can I go now_?” with shaky hands. Lily had heard him sigh with relief and had left knowing that yes that was a more positive outcome than he had been expecting. 

Lily was down at the stairs when it hit her. She popped back into her room a moment later. “This is my room. Why did _I_ leave?”

Her dad laughed as she sat down on her bed again. 

“I’m not sure myself. Maybe because you want to run away from this conversation as much as I do?” 

An evil grin split across her face. Her dad had blinked in confusion as she had called out, “Albus! James! Get up here - Dad’s got something important to share with you!”

Lily might have thrown her father to the figurative wolves, but she had known he would survive. Anything to get Albus back for his suggestion she talk to the idiot.

“Do we _all_ need to have this conversation?”

“Yes.”

James and Albus had looked at them and then back at each other for a moment. Albus shrugged before gesturing. “Do we really need to have this conversation _in Lily’s bedroom_?”

Lily had forgotten how quick witted her father could be. Almost. And then he’d have moments like this.

“Would you prefer it in _your_ bedroom?”

Albus had coughed and sputtered out a hasty, “Can’t we have it in the - wait. How about the..?“

“I’m not having the gay sex talk with Dad in the kitchen, or my bedroom,” James had groaned, “let’s just get this over with already, Alby.”

Albus groaned. “Why are _you two_ going to be here?”

“Entertainment value.” 

“Love.” 

“That’s a load of horseshit.”

“Language!”

That wasn’t enough to stop her father from going through the comments on her blog post and gathering all the information he could. Lily had thought about deleting them but she’d wanted them for evidence later. Somebody had to come up with a solution to it. Even if his first few thoughts were nothing but cringe-worthy internal screaming, her dad gathered enough information after a half hour of searching to send Hermione his plan.

****

**Going to Hogwarts initially hadn’t been everything Lily expected. “Everyone knew my name,” she recalled. Having two well-known older brothers at the school not to mention her infamous parents—from two famous families to boot—can do that to a person, but Lily felt like there was more to it. “I think because [my classmates] knew my name and face from the papers, they thought they knew who I was.” And when they couldn’t reconcile their assumptions with who she was as a person things, “got dark, fast.” So Lily turned to the internet, specifically _Sonorus_ , the site made popular among the Hogwarts post-war generations thanks to the rise of popular accounts “Magic Be Like….”, “Overheard at Beauxbatons”, and the infamous “Hogwarts Confidential”. **

**“Even when I had been in the Muggle world, I couldn’t escape it. When half your cousins live in the same town as you and you all go to the same primary school it's hard to be unknown. Everyone in town went to school with a Weasley. The internet became the one place I could be myself. No one, Muggle or magical, knew who I was online. No one had any expectations of me. It was nice to feel anonymous for a change.”**

**Lily still needed to protect herself when she was off-line. “The attention was never-ending” She winced thinking back to her Hogwarts days. “There was a nasty incident in first year that made me get tough fast.” Even though I was a few years ahead of her, I remember the incident she’s talking about well. The rise of technology was so rapid, and the adults didn’t understand what we were using it for half the time, it led to a lot of students ending up in compromising situations. “Everyone was on edge,” Mary Alice Longbottom recalled. “You didn’t know who had something they were ready to embarrass you with. Being eleven is horrible on its own—that situation made it so much worse! It was such a relief when they jammed the system.”**

**According to Lily, the harassment didn’t end once the Screens were banned. “People blamed me for all of it. I didn’t ask to have those photos taken, I certainly didn’t ask to have them run in that trash rag. It was a classic case of victim-blaming. To have that level of scrutiny put upon me at such a young age was tough. I had to build defense mechanisms. I needed them for survival.” And isn’t that a sad thing to look back and say about your eleven-year-old self?**

****

Lily Luna Potter had known about her family’s status throughout her life. Well, if she thought about it, she might have been unaware back in the very early years, say - three, four, something like that. 

But never after because Lily did not have a memory of her childhood that didn’t involve a paparazzo or a countermeasure against them involved. By age five, Ginny said Lily would mimic her ward spells and strengthen them with unconscious magic combining with her mothers. She would copy James when she got older and make sure that Albus, even if he was older, felt happy and safe, for he was the special child.

So, as she stood on the Platform with her family, blinded by flashes and blinded by rage, Lily Luna stood tall and walked through the barrier like any other kid - because she was just that. A kid.

Unfortunately for her, Hogwarts was home to a lot of kids. Kids who had figured out magic-resistance Muggle phones and spells that kept tablets and cameras working long enough to make trouble. At home, her Muggle primary schools had had strict rules regarding photographs and  
distribution regulations to follow.

Hogwarts had none of those.

Muggle Studies lessons had improved, thanks to objections held up by her Aunt Hermione. Students had to take it starting First Year. Classes included Computer Lessons every few weeks that often ended in a screen smoking or someone filling the room with obscene music.

One day, just after Herbology class, Lily had sat in the back of Muggle Studies. Much like her fellow Slytherins and Hufflepuffs, she had a distinct strawberry smell lurking around her. To this day Lily couldn’t remember why. However, it had been in Muggle Studies that Lily had received the first email after clicking into the Wizard Wide Web.

What she got was an email titled, “ _POTTER CHILD GONE WILD IN GREENHOUSE 3_ ,” with a terrible photo of her tussling with a dumb Sticking Snakevine.

 

Lily had stared at the photo for all of five seconds before firing an email angrily back, declaring “I’D LIKE TO SEE YOU LOOK BETTER WITH DIRT ON YOUR NOSE, TOSSER!”

And that - well, that had been the beginning.

One photo would get sent out to the Daily Prophet. Then time got taken out of both her parents’ days. Not only would they get called in to Hogwarts to discuss the punishments, but they would also need to make another angry plea with the school to _stop allowing it to happen_.

James would argue with Victoire over something somebody said about her. Another photo would pop up in her email, and Lily would send another response. Another photo. Albus would talk to McGonagall on her behalf despite Lily’s protests that she could defend herself. Another response.

It had only been first year, but Lily had already had a rough experience by the time exams came around. 

Somehow, it had taken photographs from the girls’ locker rooms for things to get kicked up. 

When presented with the evidence, the Headmistress and Professors had enforced the measures. They restricted student cell phone use to dorms only, and they placed protective spells in all locker rooms and toilets. 

Lily had thought the school already had spells in place, but she had shrugged it off. For once, Lily happily handed the offending item to an adult with the promise she’d have it back later, because even if Lily hadn’t known the girls before the incident, it had horrified her to find out it had happened.

Every night, Lily would sneak into one of the older girls’ rooms to break into their phones and check her email again. After the incident, there had been fewer photos of her, for obvious reasons. 

But that hadn’t stopped the hate emails that came along with them. And it hadn’t stopped her from firing right back and rejoicing when others online did the same. Given everything she’d learned about social media before school, it still amazed her it had taken until seventh year for her to realize no one was doing the same for Hogwarts.

****  
**Lily fell in love with the internet when her Uncle George ( _yes, that George_ ) gave her a prototype of the now-ubiquitous AccioInfo Screens™. “I’ve never seen a kid take to anything the way she took to the Screen,” he told me when I visited his shop, “she was making it do things I didn’t even know were possible!” Her uncle was so impressed that he gave her a job running his social media at just 9 years old. “She was advertising my joke Muggle tricks on Muggle sites and we were seeing sales from them. It was eye opening.” She worked there as both a Product Tester for new technologies and Social Media Manager throughout her Hogwarts years. “It’s thanks to her that the AI Screens do most of what they do. She’s a genius.”**

**As the AI Screens gained popularity, the Wiz Wide Web was established and soon after the first wizard-only social media sites emerged. Lily was an early adopter of _Sonorus_ and began blogging on the platform by her tenth birthday. “At first I was just re-blogging memes and posts from others, but before long I was creating and posting original content and others were re-blogging my posts.” Her follower count grew exponentially and by her fifth year she was getting thousands of interactions on every post. **

**“Her reach was unreal!” James exclaimed when I asked him about Lily’s online presence. “It became a regular topic of conversation at pub night, and at the time I had no idea I was talking about my own sister. Still blows my mind that fact.” Her brother Albus has a different take: “We’re all idiots for not realizing it was her sooner. Once she posted _the post_ , and I realized it was her, I nearly kicked myself from stupidity.”**

**_The post_ he’s referring to, is one we are all now familiar with—the post that shook the Wizarding community. “It was the first time I realized that our students may need more than we were giving them,” Headmistress Minerva McGonagall reflected from behind her desk in the Headmistresses office. “It's the one time in my career I felt I had let my students down. Words hold a power all their own. Once I figured out who the author of the piece was, I knew there was vision and tenacity beyond measure. She has her parents ability to reshape the world.”**

****  
Hearing the first whispers about her post had been fun.

A cautious whisper here and there, the occasional, “ _Merlin me!_ ” caught in the hallways. She’d been cautious enough not to name names or locations, but then the unexpected had had happened.

One classmate, the typical Gryffindor, had something short of a reckoning in Transfiguration over it. They’d all but lost their shit, and Lily had cost them twenty points for asking Professor Trelby to Silence them. 

“One girl’s problem is a serious matter - however I’d rather you not lose your head over it. Surely,” the professor had huffed, “if the girl had time to blog about it, she’s had enough to recover.”

That had made Lily see red, but it hadn’t quite reached the dreadnaught. 

“What if it’s _him_? Or _him?_ ” They’d gone about pointing to every boy in class, who all had had the grace to glance at the accuser with muted distaste. Then again, looking back, Lily had had the fortune of knowing the person who had done said act. He’d not said anything, hadn’t even looked her way. 

The coward.

And yet, as the days went on, the whispers turned to murmurs turned to talks. Lily grew weary and anxious. She’d unintentionally created a paranoid crowd-think hysteria with some girls. They had walked in groups again, forming stupid cliques she’d thought had gone away in fourth or fifth year.

More than once, Lily had found herself blocked from passing. “Do you r _eally_ need to walk like someone could attack you? Professor Sprout’s five feet away from us.”

“Well, so’s Kleinberger,” one had pointed out. 

Lily sighed. “I decked that guy three weeks ago for fogging up Andrew’s glasses on purpose. The poor kid’s a nightmare when he’s blind.”

Yeah, she’d wanted a reaction. But she hadn’t wanted the fear - only the awareness. And this wasn’t even the awareness she wanted - Lily had wanted to start a conversation.

And somehow, it felt like she’d just screamed into the void and someone wanted to scream back.

****

**I don’t ask Lily about the events that led up to her infamous post until our third meeting. We spent the morning listening to a visiting professor from America at the local Muggle University. The lecturer spoke at length about the importance of teaching a comprehensive health and wellness curriculum that includes sexual health to teenagers before taking questions for nearly two hours. Lily’s fingers didn’t stop dashing across her AccioInfo’s keyboard the entire time. At one point she had 6 screens open and was typing different things in all of them simultaneously. Her uncle wasn’t lying about her skills.**

**We leave the lecture chatting like old friends and it feels like the right time to ask. Lily is rehashing the lecturer’s conceit that there must be a continuous discussion of consent in all aspects of the students’ lives. It's the core of her entire curricula, something that appears multiple times every year. “Once they groan from fatigue of the concept, I’ll know I’ve done my job,” she chirps, practically skipping down the pavement. I see this as my opening.**

**“Do you think things would have been different for you at Hogwarts if they had hammered consent into us in the ways you’re planning?” She stills and looks at me plaintively. “Absolutely.” Then she’s bounding off again talking about her plans for the best sequence of units for the fourth-years. It looks as though my opportunity has passed.**

**An hour later, and a rousing discussion about the merits of same-gendered classes for third and fourth year, we find ourselves ensconced in the same window of the cafe where we first met. Without prompting, Lily starts talking about it again as if no time has passed. “I try not to think about it too much. I took a long time to put it behind me, and despite the image I work to project, it fucked me up.” It’s clear that even admitting this much, the better part of a decade later a decade later, is still painful for her.**

**Lily’s never talked about it publicly before, and while we discussed some specifics, I am respecting her wishes to keep the details off the record. Despite what other publications in the Wizarding world may feel, this journalist believes in respecting her subjects and sources.**

**“At the end of the day, the actual actions that took place aren’t what’s important. It's the underlying belief that what he was doing was okay. That his wants were more important than mine. That I didn’t get to have a voice in what happened, being in the room as blanket permission. Maybe if, when they jammed the Screens they had also talked to us about consent, none of it would have happened.”**

**And that's one sentence sums up the frustration and disappointment and discomfort and even fear that so many young witches, and some wizards too, felt. We’re taught about consent as children when it comes to our friends, asking instead of grabbing a toy, but then these lessons are immediately subverted when a family member wants a hug and you want to play. We’re taught that our bodies don't just belong to us. We’re taught that when we attempt to voice agency we are overruled by others. It's no wonder then, that hormonal teenagers—whose brains are not fully developed—would struggle to navigate the quagmire of consent without guidance at the same time they are discovering their sexuality.**

**Luckily, that will no longer be the case.**

****

There were only so many times a boy could try to get her attention before it got aggravating.

Albus liked to tease her and say it started the second someone even thought of looking her way. Lily had rather famously turned down every boy who’d asked her out the last few years, from one public blow out that had ended in hexes being thrown, to the third year who’d bawled when she’d declined his invitation to go to the first Hogsmeade outing. 

Lily still had nightmares from that one. She certainly didn’t appreciate Albus’ constant digging about it, either.

“Who makes someone _cry_ after they’ve asked you out?”

It was a sensible question. It was just whether you took into consideration that the person asking Lily had a habit of crying at every little thing. Erick was a soft child, bless him, he wouldn’t have lasted five minutes with her outside of class. It wasn’t her problem, Lily had better things to do than put her self esteem lower than a random boy’s pride.

In either case, Anitta had made faces at Lily in class because a certain somebody had a pash on her. She’d carefully ignored everyone for the last few days, but as they got up from the last minutes of Charms lecture, he had to make his move.

Corner had gotten his hand on the edge of her table and was intentionally blocking the board with the assignment on it. “You know, I’ve noticed that you only talk to maybe three people that aren’t a part of your family, and I was wondering if I could interest you in my becoming the fourth?” 

Merlin help him, the asshole didn’t seem to care that Lily wanted to kill him on the spot. For making a scene that is.

_“He’s a nice looking bloke, Lily. Why not just get it over with? There’s nothing wrong with him - besides the last thing your reputation needs is less of a reputation,” Anitta had sighed._

_“I didn’t even realize I had one.”_

_“Your brothers created one for you. It’s okay. You’ve got too much of a habit of setting their stuff on fire or making sure everyone knows what a loser James is. It’s great. You’re likeable. And he’s likeable, so get with him!”_

Lily thought there should be more to a person you agree to sleep with than thinking they were nice, but at this point she felt tired.

“Why don’t we meet up tonight? Could go out to the Quidditch pitch - I’ve seen you fly, right?”

He’s smiling down at her. “Yeah! Yeah, I do!”

“Great! I’d love to watch.” She had little to no interest in it but if it meant they were alone and she could come up with something to please her friends, then Lily’s got it in the bag.

—

He was nice. 

That was all Lily could think of as she watched him fly about the Quidditch pitch. It was lit up and he was doing a variety of different maneuvers. Although, from where Lily was sitting, she wondered if it was showing off or honest practice.

Maybe her family gave her bias, but he was a sub par flier in her books. But from the way he kept flying and swooping nearby her any time she perked up from a textbook, he was very interested. Enough so that he almost crashed into her towards the end of the night.

It was a near-miss, but Lily had dodged worse things than when she heard him yell from the stands behind her. “Ah! Oh dear, I haven’t hit you, have I?”

“If you had,” she laughed, “I’d be the one groaning, not you. You hurt at all?”

“Just my pride. Just... yeah, that,” he grumbled. There was a commotion behind her and soon enough the distinctive clack of Quidditch boots was making its way towards her. It was apparently a lot colder than she thought because he was far more welcome to sit closer to her if that’s how warm he was. Her arse was frozen to the bench. 

An arm made its way across her shoulders and Corner pulled her close. “Hello,” she murmured, half to the floor and half to herself, “are you looking for something?” Whether it was a shock temperature wise or sensory wise, Lily wasn’t sure, but she was awake. 

“Just a few words with my number one fan,” _ugh no way,_ “would you care to come join me somewhere warmer?” It wasn’t the worst line he’s thrown at her. Why not?

Lily picked up her books and hugged them close to her chest. He somehow still clung to her while holding his broom. She was worried about him - “You’ll strain your arms out if you do that,” Lily shrugs his arm off. “You’d be better off, waiting a little for your arms to cool down, right?”

“But it’s cold outside,” he laughed, waving her off, and again, the arm is there. “Besides, I’d be a poor date if I let you go cold.” _But you’ll be in pain for three days if you - whatever. Just. Do what he said._

They walked back to his dorm room. It’s a longer walk than to the Slytherin dorms, that’s for sure, but he made a comment about wanting to get warm and Lily figured it’s a lost cause. Besides, maybe she’ll be better off if more people see them. He’d make the rounds, chatting with a few folks as they make their way up the stairs.

It’s not that she was aching to get it on with this guy. It’s that Lily knew she wanted people seeing her with him, and that he wanted people to know they were together. But for entirely different reasons. Even if Lily can’t quite put her finger on it, this feels important to her. 

“Bye, Corner! Bye Potter! See you guys tomorrow,” the laughter that trailed behind them as he led her into the dorm has her shuddering. This feels way too exciting and strange and surprisingly public? Even if they’re heading into his room without another interruption - which, Lily noticed, has absolutely no roommates in the area. 

She sat on the armchair across from his bed. It was soft, and a welcome reprieve from the Quidditch stands. “What do you feel like doing tonight?”

“You’re asking me?” That smile was cute. A little condescending, maybe. 

“Yeah, of course I am. You’re the one that wanted to do this in the first place, right?”

The next sequence of events was something Lily did not like to think on. She left, frustrated and angry at both herself and him. It was cold out and it was dark, and if there was anything her family had taught her, it was to not go into situations unprepared. 

That was the event that Settled it. Lily Luna was not one to mess with, and neither was any girl at Hogwarts, if she had her say. 

****

**When I meet Professor Potter in her new office at Hogwarts, she’s cross-legged on the floor and surrounded by so many books, pamphlets, and manuscripts. I wonder for a moment if Madam Pince realizes there’s nothing left in her library. There are rolls of parchment spread out throughout the piles and as I look closer, I realize there is a system here: she is mapping out her curriculum.**

**“Since this is a brand new course I have to design everything from scratch.” She has the materials set in seven large clusters with smaller piles in each cluster for the different topics she plans to cover. “There wasn’t anyone for me to turn to in the magical world for advice on how to plan. I spent a good part of the spring researching how Muggles approach human sexuality in their schools. When I visited all these places, I was amazed at how different the curricula was based on the school and community. I took the best parts from many of these places and combine it with some topics from the magical world that are not commonly addressed. I’m still attention get lectures and meeting with experts on some final decisions, but mostly I have what I feel is a strong programme in place.”**

**The more she talks about her plans the more animated Lily becomes and I am captivated by this powerhouse of a woman. Before I realize it, the afternoon has passed and I’m trying to figure out how I can redo my years at Hogwarts just to take this class. Her plans range from teaching the fundamentals of human biology (the Muggle science that studies life), to the history and legality of mind-altering potions and spells—with heavy emphasis on love & lust potions, to the ins and outs of safe sex—that will again cover both Muggle and magical prophylactics & contraceptives. **

**I learn about her plans to revisit different topics throughout the years building on the student’s previous knowledge with more depth and nuance. Unsurprisingly, she talks for 10 minutes straight about all the different ways she’s considering bringing technology into her classroom. “It would be irresponsible for me to even entertain teaching without incorporating the main reason I have my platform and this opportunity.”**

**With a generous grant from her uncle, and a well-considered plan created by a team of Hogwarts Professors, AccioInfo Screens™ are finally being re-introduced to Hogwarts, albeit with many more restrictions and contingencies in place than there were over a decade ago. “The Headmistress has been so supportive of me and open to my ideas. It's been a dream to work with her in this capacity.”**

**Minerva McGonagall has always been a strong judge of character, and her approval of here is well placed. Lily came out of Hogwarts and stayed on with her uncle’s company in an advisory capacity as they advanced their AI Screen brand. “He wanted to make sure what happened while I was at Hogwarts didn’t happen again. We worked hard to implement safeguards and parental control tools. It was hard because every time we closed a loophole five more popped up.”**

**Lily realized that in order to affect real change she needed to do it on a grand scale. “ _Consent is Key_ was born around the kitchen table in our flat,” Mary Alice Longbottom tells me from behind the counter of her shop. “Lils was so frustrated with the way things were going with the Screens and ranting about how she wished someone would do something about it, so I looked at her and said ‘you’re someone.’ I don’t think I’ve ever seen her at a loss of words before that moment, or since.”**

**“Once MA said that, everything made sense. I could see the path laid out, all I had to do was take the first step.” From there, things happened pretty quickly. Her social media savvy helped gain support from all corners of the Wizarding world and as the endorsements rolled in, there was little that could be done to stop the momentum she had gained.**

**“The Wizengamot was the biggest hurdle and I’m still convinced that the Headmistress’ endorsement is what finally turned their favor. I never want to be on the side opposing her.”**

****

“Ms. Potter, please, take a seat,” Headmistress McGonagall motioned towards the chair in front of her desk.

Still feeling nervous, Lily had done just that, and hadn’t moved. Really, her professor must think her ridiculous for seeming so stiff when she’d practically flown off the walls not even two years prior in school.

After a moment in which McGonagall appeared to politely stare back, she coughed.

“Good afternoon, Professor. Sorry - let me just get my,” she twisted around the back for her bag and stopped when McGonagall coughed in return. 

With a hand raised, the headmistress gestured towards the room. “You’ve been in this office enough times throughout the years, certainly enough times in the last two, for a hastily thrown together resume to be much of an addition.”

Lily flushed in return. “I - “

“Did I or did I not say this was merely a formality?”

Another awkward moment passed, and yet again, Lily felt both frustrated and confused. “I’m not here to not interview for a job I need to _earn_ \- “

“You have already earned it enough by being a voice for cries lost in these endless halls, Ms. Potter,” McGonagall interrupted sternly. 

“Your commentary alone was enough for both students and teachers to take stock and re-evaluate how we operate at this school.” She got up and walked around the desk and placed one of her hands on Lily’s shoulder.

After a moment in which Lily felt she was being Occulumised, McGonagall spoke again. 

“My dear you’ve done exactly what your parents and their parents before them did, and you’ve made them proud. 

“You have brought about change. You have added a class to a curriculum that has remained vastly unchanged for nigh five centuries,” she laughed. “That’s an incredible feat considering the numerous attempts made by the school board to do just that.”

Lily still hadn’t spoken by the time McGonagall had made her way about her desk again. In fact, Lily didn’t say a word until she was offered another easy way out.

With a biscuit in her outstretched hand, McGonagall turned to a newly arrived ledger in front of her.

“Have a biscuit, Potter. We’ve much to get you caught up on. Let’s work the summer towards getting you ready for those fresh minds, shall we?”

****

**“To be honest, I was gobsmacked when I got her owl.” Lily states matter-of-factly about the offer to meet for the position she now holds. Without looking up from the book in her lap, biro scratching across parchment as she adds page numbers and topics to the long list in front of her, she recalls, “I knew the Headmistress had been keeping up with my work, but when she asked me to come in for the position, I made Mary Alice pinch me.”**

**When I press her more about Mary Alice, her widely rumored partner, she demurs joking that she thought I wrote for _Modern W.I.T.C.H._ and not _The Daily Prophet_. We both shuddered at the thought. Lily tells me she hopes all student’s can feel that their needs and identities are met and valued in her classroom. “If I learned anything from my parent’s experiences at Hogwarts, it that the strength in our community lies in our diversity. If we accept people for who they are, then folks who are traditionally marginalized feel safer and can be more productive at whatever they do. Everyone in society benefits.”**

**She launches in to a lecture about acceptance being at the core of consent that seems like I’m getting a preview of every student’s first lesson. “There’s no passive party when it comes to consent. You are either the person giving or withholding the consent, or you are the person accepting the other party’s decision. As the second party, you have the capability to violate someone else’s consent, but that just makes you a dick.” ... Maybe it's the unedited version of her first lesson.**

****

As she stared out the window, Lily heard the chimes of the clock tower bell echoing across the grounds. There were other noises outside. Ones as familiar as the glow of the screen on her desk, and new ones that made feelings crackle across her skin, as frightened and excited as the people that let the noises out. 

Her posts had become less frenetic over the summer. Not because Lily Luna had lost her fire, no, no sir. Lily would have said her enthusiasm had gone up tenfold, manifesting itself in hours of work and preparation that had led up to this moment.

Lily had plans for that afternoon. Plans to expose political figures that had been chasing her blog down and her peers, plans to expose another decades-old secret she’d been chasing from the safety of Scotland since she’d moved in. If it wasn’t for the thumping of her own nervous heart battering itself out of her chest, Lily would’ve been at her computer still, perfecting her lesson plans for the day.

And then there was a particularly bitter and public Twitter feud going on between her and a Muggle socialite who held a large percentage of the funding that went towards pre-Hogwarts education. Merlin did she hate politics. Lily had finally realized what a runespoor of a witch she was when she’d gone full rant mid-Tweet not two hours ago.

But for now, Lily had a first-year class to start.

“My first question to you all, today, is… Well, what do _you_ want to learn?”

It shouldn’t have surprised her, but not a single hand went up, not even from the few Gryffindors in the corner. All the children stared back at her, eyes focusing on almost everything in room except for her.

“That might be too much for a first day, hmm? What about –” she surveyed the room, “how many of you like treacle tart?”

Voices rang out with rather enthusiastic agreements. A few were a little fanatic. 

“Great – great! It’s a family favorite, as you all know,” Lily said, wincing at the chattering that came up. 

“Now, settle down – settle! How many of you would like to have treacle tart? Or any sweet, rather – it doesn’t have to be just that one!”

A chorus of different voices rang out then – shouting out, “I’d like Ice lollies!”, “Biscuits!”, and “Pies!”

Lily nodded along, walking the room and smiling at the various faces she knew she’d have to see for at least another six years and was so, so happy to see the enthusiasm. 

“Now, we all know that if someone has a treat,” she trailed off, looking around the room again, “that if we want some of it, we should…”

A Ravenclaw girl shot her hand up in the air, and Lily laughed. “Yes?”

“Ask them if they want to share!”

“Exactly! Three points to Ravenclaw– _and_ … what if they say yes?”

“Then I can get a piece–or a slice, I suppose? Something…” she trailed off with a confused look and Lily had to suppress the urge to laugh alongside her younger peers. 

“Yeah–no, you would get a piece of whatever they have! Now–“

Lily turned around with a flair and faced the window. “What if they said no?”

“Well, then–“

****

**With _Consent is Key_ running like a well oiled-machine and her professorship at Hogwarts in full swing, things are looking bright for Lily. “I’m thankful that Headmistress is so progressive and open-minded. Her support when I was first lobbying the Ministry for reforms went a long way with the Wizengamot, and once the Consent Decrees went into effect, it made starting this new course at Hogwarts so much easier.”**

**Despite the Headmistress’ support and the new legislation, not everyone is pleased with the changes taking place at Hogwarts, although it doesn't seem to phase Headmistress Minerva McGonagall one bit. “We’ve received a fair few Howlers— and more than a few owls from concerned parents, but we’ve also received plenty of support from the community. Parents now remember how painful ‘the talk’ was when they were young and want to do better by their children. They need to be educated too, and I know Professor Potter is more than up to the task.”**

**I’m happy to admit, I agree with the Headmistress. I’m sure before long the parents of today’s students will feel the same. With a lecture series planned for October, and a weekend-long seminar set right before the Winter Holiday, Hogwarts’ parents should get ready to become students once more. There is not one person in our community who cares more about these issues, nor anyone who is more knowledgeable to teach this course (my apologies to Hermione Granger-Weasley) than Lily Luna Potter.**

**If I’m being honest, there’s no one ten-year-old me would have liked to learn about all of this from—and I won’t apologize to my mother for that.**

**Author's Note:**

> Approaching Consent: Consent is everything. We rely on it in our personal lives, our professional lives, in public spaces, and in our homes. That we, as a society, are just now starting to address it on a larger scale feels like we are too late, but at least we are doing better for the next generation. Teaching children consent is important. Teaching adolescents consent in sex ed (and life) is important. Highlighting the role of consent both in and out of the bedroom is important. 
> 
> Communication is key to understanding one another’s boundaries, both online and in person. It’s never too late to learn something new - Be curious, be careful, and most of all, enjoy!


End file.
